State blames one company for gassy sinkhole, orders more seismic monitors

Louisiana Office of Conservation officials say they are holding Texas Brine accountable for a 4.2-acre sinkhole, methane trapped in an underground
aquifer, oil seeping into the area and other events in northern Assumption Parish and ordered the company to increase seismic monitoring to cover a
wider area, according to officials late Thursday night. Texas Brine contends that seismic activity damaged its storage cavern.

A little more info on what all this salt dome consists off.

The 1-mile by 3-mile oil and gas industry Napoleonville Salt Dome has 53 storage caverns, 23 storage wells and 36 brine wells that it rents to
seven different companies, Dow Chemical using more than any of the other companies, according to DNR.

From someone near there stating they felt a quake?

“I immediately thought it was the washing machine starting a new cycle, vibrating hard, but quickly realized that machine’s broken and I
haven’t used it in months.” She asked, "Do you know if there was extra seismic activity around 2:30?" At that time, the USGS seismic monitor #09,
the closest monitor between the Heilig’s house and the sinkhole, registered a sharp increase in activity, Heilig felt the jolt, according to the
USGS Bayou Corne sinkhole helicorder graphs. Monitor #03 also registered extra activity.

P.2, part 8 - The aquifer is contaminated by natural gas and is threatened by Crude

P.4, part 4 - They Fear the cavern will completely collapse.

P.4, parts 7 & 8 – They ORDER Texas Brine to produce a plan for water testing at the cavern and give it to DNR by OCT. 19.
They ORDER Texas Brine to get a groundwater vent well going where 10 feet of gas collected by OCT. 25.

The burning question remains, one that more people are asking this week is, “Whose fingerprint is on that crude oil at the sinkhole only just
over 100 miles northwest from the leaking Macondo well that is also leaking methane?" One of the five other companies stores hydrocarbons, Dow
Hydrocarbons and Resources LLC, according to DNR’s Napoleonviile Salt Dome Storage Cavern and Well chart. According to DNR, Dow stores refined
hydrocarbons in its 31 wells and caverns in the salt dome. Those hydrocarbons include butane (in three of its facilities), ethane/propane, propene
(that is highly flammable) and liquid propane. The other four companies operating in the salt dome are Pontchartrain Natural Gas Sys. (storing natural
gas), K/D/S-Promix Storage (storing butane and LPG), LLC., Occidental Chemical Corporation/Occidental Brine (not actively brining as of Sept. 2012),
and Texas Brine, the company some are calling the present "industry fall guy." None of those are storing in the wells/caverns diesel or crude, as
now identified in the sinkhole, if the DNR listing is correct. Since radioactive waste is not listed in DNR’s pdf. chart listing well/cavern company
owners and contents, and DNR had authorized Texas Brine to store radioactive waste in its cavern, that list is incomplete, possibly with falsified
entries.

Texas Brine, the company that owns a failed salt cavern blamed for the sinkhole says it will comply with new orders.

Texas Brine continues clean up Monday, but is limited to skimming as boats will not be allowed in the sinkhole due to the activity of removing
hydrocarbons from the cavern. This is for the safety of workers as the removal of the hydrocarbons may cause pressure changes that could affect the
sinkhole.

If Texas Brine is so certain it wasn't their well that caused the sinkhole, but that area seismicity caused the well to collapse, why aren't they
still fighting?

Seems to me that they know their well is the culprit and they are trying to stay ahead of any worse publicity.

Description: A sharp tremor was recorded by USGS monitors just after 9 p.m. Wednesday at the site of the giant Louisiana sinkhole in Assumption
Parish. The giant sinkhole appeared in August near the Bayou Corne and Grand Bayou areas. The Assumption Parish Police Jury says the tremor was large
enough that the body wave phases could easily be identified. A body wave travels through the interior of the earth. The preliminary location of the
tremor was just SE of Oxy #3 cavern at a depth of 500m. There is no additional information specific to this seismic activity at this time. The
sinkhole is now about four acres in size. Residents were forced from their homes on August third, two months after the bayous started bubbling. They
are still evacuated from their homes.

Well looks like we are in wait and see mode as not much news after the tremors earlier in the weekend. Hopefully they can figure out what to do and
get this problem solved.

Latest flyover

Texas Brine, LLC
UPDATE
October 28, 2012
1. The Observation Well is now shut in and will remain so until early next
week.
2. No removal of hydrocarbons from the sinkhole surface took place today.
The characteristics of the sinkhole remain unchanged.
3. The shallow aquifer relief well is closed. Work on getting the well to
produce gas will continue next week.

• Shaw E&I completed collection of water samples from the shallow water
Geoprobes (analytical results expected by 15 November).

– As of 26 October, Texas Brine has removed 99 roll off boxes hydrocarbon
contaminated debris.
– As of 26 October, Texas Brine has removed approximately 825 Barrels of
hydrocarbons from the surface of the sinkhole.

– Following recent reports of seismic activity on the western side of the Napoleonville Salt Dome, the Office of Conservation asked Dr. Gary Hecox
with Shaw Environmental and Infrastructure to evaluate the readings from the USGS monitoring equipment. Below is Dr. Hecox’s analysis:
• On Tuesday October 23, 2012 at 9:06 PM a short duration, pronounced seismic event was recorded at the site. The Center for Earthquake Research and
Information (CERI) was able to determine that this event occurred at a depth of approximately 500 meters (1,600 feet). Shaw has reviewed the data from
the cavern pressure monitoring system and sinkhole bubble activity. The seismic event did not have any discernible effect on cavern pressure or
sinkhole bubble activity. No new bubble sites have been observed since this event occurred and activity at existing bubble sites has not visibly
changed.

Next Operational Period (29 - 31 Oct 2012)
Incident Action Plan

– Shaw E&I to collect pressure readings from the shallow water Geoprobes

The sinkhole is in the left portion (the rectangle that is colored differently) and the area outlined in red is the salt dome. If the salt dome
continues to collapse, the area engulfed by the sinkhole will almost certainly grow to enormous proportions.

First, I just wanted to thank all of the ATS members who have been faithfully posting updates. This is an important event, for the people affected
and for the environment; I am glad it is not being forgotten.

I was wondering if any of the locals were feeling tremors this morning? Here is a screen shot from temporary station LA08 (I believe it is the one
near the defunct water well?):

Would like to point out in this update that they state the cavern floor has risen...
10 feet since Oct 19th
52 feet since Sept 24th

Texas Brine, LLC UPDATE October 29, 2012
1. The Observation Well remained shut in today. During hydrocarbon removal on Friday and Saturday, the casing pressure was reduced thus indicating
brine was filling the casing. However, after this work, hydrocarbons continued to enter the casing from the cavern causing the casing surface pressure
to return to 940-970 psig on Sunday. Hydrocarbon removal is planned to resume Tuesday and continue through the week, with brine being pumped in to
replace the hydrocarbon to maintain steady cavern pressures.
2. The testing of the Observation Well last Friday indicated the cavern floor had risen an additional 10 feet from the previous measurement on October
19. The cavern floor has come up approximately 52 feet since it was first measured on September 24. Additional measurements are planned for later this
week.
3. The removal of liquid hydrocarbons from the sinkhole surface resumed today. The size and characteristics of the sinkhole remain unchanged. Gas
continues to bubble up in the center of the sinkhole.
4. Since perforating the casing last week, the shallow aquifer relief well has still not indicated any gas pressure. Various options to assist gas to
start flowing through the perforations are being evaluated. Once these plans are finalized, work is expected to resume later this week in order to
begin venting/flaring gas from the aquifer.

1. The Observation Well remained shut in today. Casing pressure at the wellhead was measured at 966 psi this morning, which is consistent with the
range of all previous readings. Sonar imaging is planned for later this week to determine if there have been any changes to the interior of brine
cavern #3.
2. No changes in the size and characteristics of the sinkhole have been observed. Removal of liquid hydrocarbon from the sinkhole surface utilizing
skimming equipment continues. Oil containment booms across the sinkhole are being used to partition off the bubbling area in the center in case liquid
hydrocarbons are surfacing with the gas.
3. The shallow aquifer relief well remains shut in. There is no discernible natural gas pressure at the well head. Options are still being explored
as to how to best clear the perforations in the relief well casing to facilitate the flow of natural gas to the surface for venting and/or
flaring.

Would like to point out in this update that they state the cavern floor has risen...
10 feet since Oct 19th
52 feet since Sept 24th So having said that. What is this? Is this the edges of the cavern that are falling to the floor, cause if so I would
think that the sink hole would be much larger. That is 42 feet of "stuff" that has accumulated down there. I haven't been paying 100% attention to
the sinkhole lately but I wonder if they ever published the test results of what was down there when they first discovered that the cavern was
shallower then it should be.

Now that is a good question cuase it could be comming from the failed wall filling up the cavern. Since there is a breach in the wall all the soil,
trees, rock and earth that came down when the sinkhole was formed went into the cavern. I believe you are right as the sinkhole is bigger than they
state. Even the pictures are decieving as in the trees and shrubs make it look smaller. Just my opinion but i believe it to be much larger than what
shows in the pictures. I do believe it has risen due to all the debris from the the fallen wall and the earth that came rushing in from the outside
and continues to fill in the space. As in the more the floor rises the bigger this sinkhole will get also. Last measurement they said in the meeting
it could get as big as 1500 feet wide and its only stated officially as 500 feet wide. Sorry for any spelling errors in advance lol

This is an older article but it shows the scientists are also scratching their heads.

Parish officials say the volume of the brine-filled
sinkhole is much smaller than the amount of displaced earth now in the cavern, prompting worries about other unknown subterranean voids or gaps left
in the area by the shifted sediments that could lead to further disturbance at the
surface.

Did anyone else notice the odd shape of the terrain in this photo by LA08? Local resident idahopicker mentioned that another area was forming a
sinkhole close-by. Is this it, or have I gotten my seismometers mixed up?

Texas Brine, LLC UPDATE November 2, 2012
1. The sonar data collection was completed yesterday evening. That data must now be converted to an imaging format that depicts the interior of brine
cavern #3, a process that takes several days to finalize. Total depth measurement taken on Thursday indicated that the bottom of cavern #3 moved up
approximately 13 feet since the last measurement on October 19. At 9:30 a.m. today, the slow removal of liquid hydrocarbon remaining in the cavern was
resumed. Brine is pumped into the cavern at a rate that displaces equal quantities of liquid hydrocarbon through the casing to the surface where it is
removed from the site.

2. The removal of both debris and liquid hydrocarbon from the sinkhole surface continued today. Gas bubbling activity in the center of the sinkhole
has reduced significantly following the sloughing event late Tuesday. Results from the sinkhole depth survey taken on October 30 indicate the maximum
sinkhole depth is now at 170 feet versus 445 feet on October 4. A repeat sinkhole depth survey was conducted yesterday with results expected early
next week. No other change in the sinkhole size was reported.

3. A portion of the water that had accumulated in the casing of the shallow aquifer relief well was removed late Thursday and the well began to vent
some natural gas from the aquifer to the wellhead. The vent flow was stopped overnight and reached a modest 30 psi at the wellhead. This morning
piping was connected to the wellhead and the natural gas is being flared through a temporary system. Plans are to sample the gas this afternoon and
flare natural gas from the relief well over the weekend during daytime hours. Next week, additional water will be removed from the casing to allow
greater natural gas flow. In addition, a more permanent flaring system will be installed to allow more continuous venting.

• Flaring has commenced at the vent well located on Texas Brine’s property.

– SEET has received and is analyzing community ambient air sampled 9/28/2012-10/30/2012 (MultiRAE). SEET will issue a letter to the parish in
reference to these findings once the review of the data has been completed.
– SEET has received and is analyzing sample results for air at bubble sites collected 9/28/2012-10/30/2012 (MultiRAE). SEET will issue a letter
to the parish in reference to these findings once the review of the data has been completed.

Next Operational Period (2 - 5 Nov 2012) Incident Action Plan

– Efforts are underway to finalize contracts to remove material from inside the casing at the ORW-4 location in an attempt to vent the
well.

Texas Brine, LLC UPDATE November 5, 2012 1. The Observation Well was opened this morning at 7:30 a.m. to resume the process of pumping brine into
cavern #3 at a controlled rate that displaced liquid hydrocarbon in the cavern up to the surface. The removal of the liquid hydrocarbon continued
until late morning. The well was then shut in to stabilize pressure in the casing. The well will remain closed until Wednesday when the process will
be repeated.

2. The removal of liquid hydrocarbon and debris remaining on the sinkhole surface was resumed today. There were no observable changes in the shape or
size of the sinkhole.

3. The shallow aquifer relief well was shut in this morning while a new flaring system was connected. This new flaring system was restarted this
morning. Plans are being developed to continuously operate the flaring system.

• Texas Brine conducted the following operations on their investigatory well: • Collected a total of 4274 bbls(cumulative total as of 5
November 2012) of hydrocarbons from the Oxy 3A Cavern. • Flared a total of 459 mcf of metered gas(cumulative total as of 5 November 2012)

• Air Monitoring Sample Data – SEET has received and is analyzing community ambient air sampled 9/28/2012-11/1/2012 (MultiRAE). SEET will
issue a letter to the parish in reference to these findings once the review of the data has been completed. – SEET has received and is analyzing
sample results for air at bubble sites collected 9/28/2012-11/1/2012 (MultiRAE). SEET will issue a letter to the parish in reference to these findings
once the review of the data has been completed.

The Assumption Parish sheriff stated that methane ignition and explosion are possible in the Bayou Corne sinkhole area, refuting naysayers about
such an explosion and spotlighting grave human rights issues related to the "history-making event" and "environmental nightmare,’ according to a
KLFY Channel 10 three-part special televised report aired Friday. The possibility exists that Louisiana's sinkhole-related methane, percolating in
over a dozen sites near and miles away from the sinkhole area, could ignite and cause an explosion, according to Assumption Parish Sherriff Michael J.
Waguespack, interviewed about the unprecedented Bayou Corne event unfolding in South Louisiana's swampland. Waguespack, lover of south Louisiana
people and culture, made the statement to KLFY reporter Chuck Huebner about the massive amount of methane known to be trapped below the Assumption
Parish sinkhole area surface, continually leaking and bubbling to the surface.

In another massive collapse Tuesday after strong quakes six days earlier, the sinkhole grew to the size of seven football fields.

Approximately three million cubic feet of material has gone into this cavern, according to Waguespack. He explained that the sinkhole itself only
accounts for approximately 550,000 cubic feet of that material. "So there is approximately 2. 7 million cubic feet of material that’s entered the
cavern that’s unaccounted for,” said Waguespack. If and when the voids settle, the volume of the sinkhole could be expected to be six times its
current size.

Butane stored in one of the caverns has added concern about an explosion that independent scientists have previously explained is a grave
possibility.

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